1. Field
One or more embodiments relate to a water soluble binder composition, a method of producing the same and an electrode for a rechargeable battery employing the same.
2. Description of the Related Technology
Rechargeable batteries having large capacity and cycle life characteristics are in demand to include in smaller, lighter, and higher performance portable devices.
To satisfy the demand, development of materials and methods is under way for achieving high capacity by forming high-capacity active material of a positive electrode, increasing an electrode slurry density and increasing a thickness of the electrode. In addition, active research is being made into method for replacing existing active materials for a negative electrode, such as graphite-based material, with materials capable of achieving high capacity of a negative electrode, such as silicon, a silicon and silicon oxide composite, a silicon and graphite composite, tins, or alloys thereof. Some rechargeable battery products using a small amount of the silicon-silicon oxide composite are commercially available.
In order to improve high-capacity, cycle life and stability characteristics, materials for forming a rechargeable battery, such as an electrolyte, a separator, or a binder, other than the positive and negative electrode materials, is under development.
For example, a binder composition using a polymer binder composition converted into polyimide during a drying step has proposed. However, since the binder composition is dissolved in an organic solvent to be used, it is not environmentally friendly and cannot be directly applied to water-based processes currently employed in negative electrode production lines.